


And the Stars Went Out

by Shadow15



Category: Guardians of the Galaxy (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: Depression, Dubious Consent, Heats But Not ABO, Implied Childhood Sexual Abuse, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Implied/Referenced Incest, M/M, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Thor is morally grey
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-09-14
Updated: 2019-03-09
Packaged: 2019-07-12 09:20:24
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 8
Words: 18,531
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15992285
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Shadow15/pseuds/Shadow15
Summary: Thor acknowledges there's probably a reason why all of this friends keep telling him how wrong it was of him to have bought himself a thrall, but he doesn't understand; living a luxurious and carefree lifestyle for fifteen-hundred years blinded him to the troubles of others.  That was probably why, when none of the riches or comfortable lifestyle was enough to get Peter Quill to trust him and stop being so damned anti-touch to him, Thor found his frustrations growing at owning such a resentful thrall.The problem was, Thor had grown up in a world where he stood over everyone and was given anything and everything he could possibly have wished for.  There was a reason he couldn't possibly have ever understood why Quill was so damaged.





	1. Chapter 1

Thor was no stranger to walking the streets of Knowhere in his hunt to find his next bed partner; as good as his fellow Asgardians were to lay with, he’d always been open to experimentation.  He wasn’t limited to his own kind; he’d slept with many different species before - and that was probably why, when Thor’s eye was caught by two men standing by the doorway of one of the local taverns, he stopped and stared.  

They looked as human as Thor himself did, so that in itself already had him interested; finding such delicacies in Knowhere was rare, and out of all the species he’d been with, he’d never slept with a  _ Midgardian  _ before.  What  _ really  _ caught his attention was the way the brunet stood, head ducked and submissive to the much older man - judging by his grey hair and beard - he was with.  

Thor licked his lips.  The brunet was appetising, as tamed as he appeared to be - and what made it even better was that he  _ definitely  _ was the kind of thing Thor was after tonight; he knew the area they were standing in was well-known for people looking for one-night stands.  

“What are you looking at?” 

Thor turned his head to the side to look at his accompanying brother.  He blinked in surprise before he murmured apologetically, “I forgot you were with me, Loki.  Forgive me.” 

Loki shrugged.  He looked to where Thor had been staring just before.  His eyebrow raised, and his nose crinkled in distaste. “Really?  A  _ Midgardian _ ?” 

“Why not?  I have never been with one before,” Thor pointed out.

“His body would break beneath your hands, brother.  Midgardians are fragile.” Loki sighed when his warning was disregarded and Thor wandered over to the humans anyway.  “Stupid Thor…” 

Thor kept his eyes on the brunet as he closed the distance between them.  He couldn’t keep the grin off his face when he came to a stop before them, quite enjoying the way the brunet’s head snapped up to give him a burning glare that would have had lesser men running for their lives.  Thor had always been observant, though, and the biggest giveaway that this man would not fight him unless pushed too far was the way his body quivered so subtly, it was almost unnoticeable. 

The older male, however, seemed pleased at Thor’s interest, and he cut right to the chase.   “Name your price. He isn’t for rent this time; he’s for keeps.” 

Thor almost purred at those words as he reached out to caress the brunet’s chin.  He grinned when sharp teeth snapped at his fingers aggressively, like a dog tired of being poked at.  “Feisty. Why are you selling him? He is very beautiful.” 

“Hmm, he is, but everyone who has shown interest in him doesn’t want the trouble that’ll come with training him - he’s been given back to me many times.  He’s disobedient and a damned little shit, so you’ll need to kick his ass into line.” 

Thor allowed his eyes to meet green ones that glared back with such intense ferocity, he felt a shiver of delight roll down his spine; he’d always loved a challenge, and this could be his biggest one yet.  His voice softened as he asked, “What is your name?” 

Thor didn’t get a response - not from his potential purchase, anyway.  The brunet’s companion spoke though. “His name is Peter, and I am Ego.  Make an offer.” 

“Peter~”  The name rolled off Thor’s tongue easily.  He reached into his pocket to withdraw a bulging coinsac to pass to Ego.  “This should satisfy~” 

Ego accepted the coinsac and opened it.  He peered inside before he gave a nod and put his hand on Peter’s shoulder.  Thor didn’t miss the way Peter’s body went rigid beneath the touch. “It will do.  Have fun with your new owner, Peter.” 

Thor grinned.  He grabbed Peter’s wrist to stop him from chasing after Ego once the man had left; it wouldn’t do to have Peter mistake who his master was, after all.  “Nu-uh, Peter; you are mine now. You stay with me.” 

Peter gave a feral hiss and swiped at Thor’s hand.  He clawed the touch away from him before he stood proud, doing his best to glare Thor down - but Thor, who had faced things  _ far  _ more fearsome than Peter could ever be, could only laugh.  His reaction to the aggression only put a wary expression on Peter’s face, as if he truly didn’t know what to expect or how to go from here.

“Come, Peter; my brother is waiting for me.” Thor turned around to get back to Loki’s side.  He almost expected Peter to try and make a run for it, or at least stand where he was and refuse to move - but, to his surprise, Peter hesitated before he moved his feet and followed at a distance behind Thor. 

Loki, who had watched from afar, stared at Thor with a raised eyebrow.  He took one look at Peter before he crinkled his nose again and almost spat, “Why do you never listen?  What the hell did you  _ do _ ?” 

Thor grinned happily.  “Loki, meet Peter. I just bought him.” 

Loki dragged his hand over his face in disbelief.  He sighed loudly. “...Brother… I  _ can’t _ …  A  _ Midgardian _ ?” 

“He is  _ beautiful,  _ Loki,” Thor defended playfully.  “How could I  _ not _ ?” 

“I don’t know - maybe the fact that you could probably  _ breathe  _ on him and break his bones might have crossed your mind at one point.”  Loki rolled his eyes. “Idiot…” 

Thor laughed.  He glanced at Peter before he looked back to Loki and lowered his voice.  “I think my Midgardian is broken, Loki… He seems really angry…” 

Loki shrugged.  “Well,  _ you’re  _ the one who loves them so much, so fix it yourself!” 

Thor’s face lit up as he let out a sound of realisation.  “That is a brilliant idea, Loki. Will you accompany us to see my friends?” 

Loki didn’t get a chance to respond because Thor had grabbed his arm before he’d even finished speaking and dragged him back to where they had arrived at.  He couldn’t help but let out a sigh; Thor was a moron, but sooner or later he’d learn why it wasn’t advised for an Asgardian to sleep with a  _ Midgardian  _ of all things. 

 

Whatever Thor had expected from his human friends, it  _ probably  _ wasn’t the looks of concern and  _ uneasiness  _ the Avengers gave him as they stood around the living area of Stark Tower and watched the way he forcibly held Peter in place to introduce them all to him.  

Steve was the first to speak up.  “Umm… Thor…? How did you… find him again…?” 

Thor’s tone was prideful as he puffed his chest out and boomed, “I bought him, friend Rogers.  He was being sold and so I paid for him.” 

Steve winced.  He heard the mumbling from around the room, but still, he murmured, “...What  _ for _ …?” 

Thor wasn’t ashamed, doubtful or even  _ uncomfortable  _ with the reactions he was getting from his friends; he felt only confusion that he even had to  _ explain  _ this to them all - Midgardians did the same thing, didn’t they?  He was  _ sure  _ Tony had told him once about it - prostitution, or something like that word...  “For companionship, a thrall and sex. What else would I buy him for?” 

Tony cleared his throat.  He stepped forward, but even  _ he  _ seemed at a loss as to how to approach the situation.  “Why the  _ hell _ … would you buy someone to be a sex slave…?  Where did he even  _ come  _ from?  You know if he’s from slavery, he’s probably diseased as all hell, right…?” 

Thor cocked his head to the side.  He nibbled at his lip as he contemplated his response.  “He will not be  _ just  _ for sex, Stark.  I want sex from him, yes.  But I also need a companion and someone to do everything for me.  And I do not understand what you mean by diseased; I am sure he will be fine.” 

“No.  No, no, no.” Tony shook his head.  “Buddy, for all you know, he’s got  _ AIDS _ .  You  _ don’t  _ want to mess around with that stuff.” 

“Is it a human ailment?” Thor hummed as he pondered over the comment.  “No matter; I have never heard of an Asgardian suffering Midgardian illness.  I am sure it will be fine.” 

Steve sighed.  He didn’t know if they were going to be able to get through to Thor and make him understand what was so wrong with what he had just done; things were probably  _ vastly  _ different on Asgard, and for all they knew, this was commonplace.  

Instead, Steve allowed his gaze to settle on Peter.  He was deeply saddened at seeing how his face was twisted with so many different emotions; fear, wariness, hatred…  But the exhaustion, and the  _ out-of-place expression  _ he wore… 

Steve could understand that, and he wasn’t sure he could ever forgive Thor for bringing those heavy emotions onto another living being.  

“Thor…” Steve nodded his head at Peter.  “He looks sickly. How long ago did you… find him…?” 

“Hmm?” Thor looked to Loki for confirmation.  When all he received was an annoyed glare in response, he hummed again.  “Perhaps… A little over a day or so? We were going to come straight here, but we got distracted and went back to Asgard for a while.” 

From over on the couches where he had been sitting so quietly, Bruce grit his teeth.  There was a shake to his voice as he asked, “Thor… Has he  _ slept  _ since he’s been with you?” 

“Oh, no; I have ensured he has stayed with me,” Thor promised. 

Bruce let out a heavy sigh.  He shook his head and got to his feet.  Warily, he approached the newcomer so he could get a better look.  “Thor, he is  _ human _ .  If you’ve been dragging him all over the place…  Thor, he’s  _ exhausted _ …” 

Thor turned to look properly at Peter.  He took note of how heavy Peter’s eyelids seemed to be, and now that he was paying closer attention, he could hear the ragged breaths slowly escaping him.  Thor’s shoulders slumped, and he gave a dispirited frown. He turned back to Bruce. “I am not very good with Midgardians just yet, Banner; I am still learning about them.” 

With Natasha and Clint over in the kitchen and listening in silence, Bruce, Tony and Steve looked at each other before they turned back to Thor.  Tony spoke in a forced tone. “It’s okay, Point Break… Just let him get some sleep before you do anything else.” 

Thor nodded.  “He can sleep in my bed; he will have to start getting used to it.” 

“Uh, Thor…” Bruce’s hands fumbled together in hopes he wouldn’t invoke Thor’s wrath, “...when we say sleep…  We  _ mean  _ sleep…  Not  _ sex _ .”

Thor shrugged.  “He may still sleep in there.  He will be comfortable on my mattress.” 

“Buddy, do you mind if we look him over?” Tony’s eyes had fixed on bruising that was poking out from beneath Peter’s jacket sleeve, hidden almost completely by his red gloves, but not enough when Peter fidgeted and rode his sleeve up unknowingly.  “Make sure he’s okay?”

“Ah, Peter does not seem to like touch,” Thor warned. There was a possessive growl to his voice now, and the way he stepped closer to Peter told them it probably just wasn’t Peter’s dislike for physical contact that was pissing him off.  

“Thor, he’s  _ human _ ,” Bruce pointed out.  “He looks like death warmed up.  You don’t realise just how sick humans  _ get. _  He could need a  _ hospital _ .”

Thor frowned slightly. He turned back to Peter to get a better look at him.  Maybe Bruce was right, because though he was still inexperienced with Midgardians, he was sure they weren’t meant to be so pale, or hold such large, grey bags under their eyes.  

Now that he was thinking about it, even Peter’s  _ hair  _ didn’t hold that shine that his friends’ hair all did, and Peter looked so malnourished, perhaps Thor  _ could  _ understand the Avengers’ concerns. 

“Peter?  Are you feeling okay?” Thor reached out to put his hand on Peter’s shoulder. Despite the fact Peter looked ready to fall asleep on his feet, his eyes still snapped open at the oncoming touch, and with a loud snarl, he took a few steps backwards. 

Natasha and Clint couldn’t take any more.  They came forward now, and Natasha grabbed Thor by his hair and  _ pulled _ .  She leaned in close to growl, “You listen to us, Thor; whatever has been done to him, you aren’t going to understand. Let us  _ help  _ him.” 

Thor nodded now.  If it was really this serious, he…  He looked back to Loki, not surprised to find that he had pulled out a book some time during the argument and ignored them all.  “Loki… Loki, come. We will let my friends take care of Peter for now. We will sit and eat.” 

Loki shrugged carelessly. “I  _ told  _ you this was a bad idea. You should have left him.” 

Sure enough, after all the kicking and screaming to get Peter into Thor’s bedroom for rest, when Tony returned an hour later, he looked grim. 

Thor, however, was oblivious to just how bad the news could be.  “How is Peter? Is he sleeping?” 

Tony nodded.  “Banner gave him a big dose of sedatives; he’s not gonna wake up for a long time.  We looked him over while he was sleeping, and… Thor, I don’t know what the hell you were thinking when you got him, but I think you should leave him here with us - at least for a while.” 

Thor’s eyes narrowed, but he didn’t directly say anything about how much he hated that idea. “And  _ why _ is that, friend Stark…?” 

“Whatever he’s come out of, he’s not going to be well - physically or mentally - and from the looks of him earlier, his emotional state is already a wreck.” Tony rubbed the back of his neck.  “Banner is working on him now, but wherever he came from, he’s probably lucky to have gotten away when he had. He’s bruised terribly, so most likely beaten. And the other thing…” 

Thor leant in closer when Tony trailed off. “Yes?” 

“...” Tony shook his head.  “Whatever plans you had to sleep with him, I doubt he’s going to reciprocate.  He’s been…  __ There’s  _ damage  _ down there.” 

“Damage?” Thor’s hands curled into fists at the thought of someone hurting his beautiful Peter. 

“Yeah - whether it’s from rape or consensual sex, we don’t know, but that kind of damage…?  We doubt it’s consensual… We don’t know about Asgardians, but here, people can  _ die  _ from rape, Thor.  There’s  _ damage _ .” 

Thor hummed.  He considered everything he had learnt and put it together in his mind. If someone had hurt Peter, he could work around that.  All he needed was for Peter to trust him enough to lay compliantly beneath his body at nights - and that shouldn’t be  _ too  _ hard to accomplish with just how much luxury Thor could lavish him in; only a  _ fool  _ wouldn’t want what a  _ prince  _ had to offer. 

“That is okay,” Thor finally responded. “He will get used to me one day.” 

Tony groaned and slapped his face.  “Seriously… Leave him  _ here  _ for a while before you  _ kill  _ the poor thing.  We think he’s already on death’s doorstep; you take him to Asgard and he isn’t going to last long, Thor. He’s  _ human _ .” 

Thor looked at Loki when he heard his brother snigger. He sneered. “What is so funny, Loki?” 

“The fact that he thinks the Midgardian would last with  _ you _ .” Loki snorted again.  “Enjoy him while you can, brother.” 

“Why the hell is  _ he _ in my house, anyway?” Tony glared at Loki.  “Who thought it was a good idea to take that gag from your mouth, Reindeer Games?  We liked you better when you shut up and let Thor drag you around in chains.” 

Thor waved a dismissive hand.  “He is spared sentencing so long as he is with me to keep an eye on him.  I apologise; perhaps I  _ should  _ cover his mouth again as he has been nothing but annoying.” 

Tony clapped Thor on the shoulder. “Well, don’t expect to see Peter up for a while, Point Break; he’s going to need a  _ lot  _ of recovery.” 

Thor nodded and settled himself further into the couch. He would wait patiently; Peter was too beautiful  _ not  _ to. 


	2. Chapter 2

By the time Thor got up from the couch and wandered down to his bedroom, it was dark outside.  Loki had already retired for the night, leaving Thor to make the journey alone. When he stepped into his bedroom, he found out where Steve had been all day; sitting by the window not far from the bed was Captain America himself, seemingly watching over Peter as he slept.

Thor couldn’t help but feel annoyance settle deep into his stomach; if anyone was supposed to be looking after Peter, it was  _ Thor! _

“Rogers.” Thor’s tone was sharp.  “What are you doing?” 

Steve looked at Thor with tired eyes.  “I feel really  _ bad  _ for him, Thor…  He’s been having nightmares…” 

Thor allowed his gaze to wander to Peter.  He could see the way Peter’s face was scrunched into uneasiness, but he didn’t understand it; he’d  _ never  _ understand nightmares. What was there to dream so restlessly about?  “I have never had nightmares, friend Rogers.” 

A wistful expression crossed Steve’s face.  “You are lucky… I wouldn’t wish nightmares on anyone…”

Thor didn’t respond to that; he only climbed up onto the bed and sat cross legged next to Peter so he could drag his knuckles against Peter’s cheek affectionately.  

Steve winced at the sight. In any other circumstance, it probably would have been  _ cute  _ \- but  _ how  _ could it be cute when he knew  _ exactly  _ the kind of plans Thor had for him?  He took a deep breath. “Thor… I can’t see my friend do this to someone…” 

Thor cocked his head to the side.  “Do what?” 

“ _ Hurt  _ someone, Thor!” Steve shook his head.  “It isn’t  _ right _ !” 

“I do not have intentions of harming him,” Thor responded.  “He will never be harmed so long as he is a good companion to me.  He will be fed and clothed and cared for; he will just have  _ duties _ to fulfill.” 

“Like allowing you to  _ rape  _ him.” The edge that entered Steve’s voice had Thor raising his eyebrow.  “Thor, that isn’t  _ right _ !  You can’t just  _ rape  _ someone and -” 

“There was never any intention in my mind to rape him,” Thor interrupted.  “Even when I first saw him. He is not in any danger from me, Rogers; he will be  _ coaxed  _ into learning his duties.” 

“And what if he doesn’t  _ want  _ to be  _ coaxed _ ?  Did you think of that, Thor?” 

Thor fell silent at the question.  Truth be told, he  _ hadn’t  _ considered that.  He’d only considered the idea that anyone would jump to be in Peter’s position.  He was a prince, after all; what kind of person  _ wouldn’t  _ want to be in servitude of someone like him?  By extension, they’d be receiving his luxurious lifestyle, too.  If anything, Peter should be  _ thanking  _ him for choosing him.  

Thor’s reply was so confident, he  _ knew  _ he  _ had  _ to be right.  “Peter will want what I can offer him, Rogers.  He will be  _ happy  _ with me.  I thank you for your concern, but you need not worry; once Peter gets to know me, he will want me.”

Steve had never felt so sick before; Thor was…  _ delusional _ .  “What makes you think that, Thor…?” 

“Hmm?   _ Everyone  _ wants me.” Thor’s smile was so bright, Steve wanted to hit him.  “Now, if you will excuse me, I am going to bathe and then sleep.” 

“Thor, wait!” Steve stood up and came to Thor’s side.  He took one last glance at Peter to make sure he was still sleeping before he whispered, “ _ Promise  _ me, you aren’t going to do anything to him, Thor.   _ Promise  _ me.” 

Thor blinked.  He took a step back, and with a disapproving shake of his head, he growled, “While he is already damaged?  He needs to heal! What do you think I  _ am _ ?” 

Steve’s eyes searched Thor’s for several seconds before he whispered, “I don’t know anymore, Thor…  I just… don’t know…” 

Thor turned his nose up.  He didn’t bother replying; he walked past Steve and into the bathroom to end the conversation; he wasn’t in the mood to allow Steve to continue lecturing him.  He ran himself a warm bath and soaked until all of the tension in his muscles disappeared and the water eventually fell cold before he got out and wrapped a towel around his waist. He could hear movement in the other room - a good sign; Peter must have woken up already. 

Thor left the bathroom and headed straight to the wardrobe to dress. He glanced at Peter on the way, seeing him stirring more and more until Thor was sure his eyes would open any moment now. 

Sure enough, by the time Thor had donned boxers and a red hoodie, Peter was awake and staring at him in silence.  There was a calculating look in his eyes, as if he was studying Thor’s every movement and formulating it all in his mind. 

Thor gave a pleased smile. “You are awake.”

Peter tried to glare, but within seconds, his face scrunched up into distress and he swayed on the spot.  His hands shot up to grab his face, and a small groan escaped his lips. His face paled further. Thor frowned now.  

“Peter?” Thor didn’t hesitate to come to Peter’s side and place his hand on his shoulder in concern.  “Peter, are you -” 

Thor jumped back when a bright blue light came out of nowhere and hit him in the chest.  It didn’t hurt; it merely took him by surprise to know that, with Peter having been stripped from his clothing and dressed instead in soft robes, there should be no weapons on him whatsoever - and he was  _ human _ !  So how could he…?

The bitter expression on Peter’s face was a warning now.  His eyes were narrowed and he was biting into his lip, but his body language wasn’t exactly threatening.  Thor did, however, find out what had hit him when Peter’s hands sparked with blue energy, and a small ball settled into the palms of his hands.  

Thor grinned.  He wasn’t threatened - in fact, he was absolutely  _ fascinated _ .  “That is Celestial energy.  But you are  _ human _ .” 

A soft growl was escaping Peter now.  Thor knew the next blow of energy to hit him wasn’t going to be a warning like the last time.  But still, he couldn’t look away. 

“I have never met a Celestial before…” Thor heeded nothing Peter did in the moment and instead grabbed a thin wrist to examine it better.  He winced as the energy ball was thrust into his chest again because this time, it  _ did  _ hurt, but it was nothing he couldn’t handle; Peter may have been wielding the powers of a God, but he didn’t seem experienced in utilising them.  Perhaps he had never had proper training? Something clicked in his mind. “You are a hybrid. But you are still young - too young to be able to fully control your powers.” 

Peter jerked his hand free from Thor’s touch now that he’d learnt Thor was no ordinary alien.  He backed away slowly as his eyes flickered over every inch of Thor’s body, calculating every movement and  _ learning _ .  “...” 

Thor cocked his head to the side.  “Why do you not speak? I would like to hear your voice.” 

Peter looked to his lap.  The emotion on his face was conflicting, as if he were having an internal war with himself on what his best course of action to take was.  Finally, he looked up, and with all the fear of a child who knew it had done wrong, he whispered, “You have not ordered me to…” 

Thor looked taken aback.  “Why would I ever give you such an order?  You speak freely; who has told you you do not have the right to speak?” 

Peter licked at his lips as he debated on whether or not he should obey.  Finally, he murmured, “...Ego…” 

Thor shook his head.  “Peter, you need not ever hide your voice from me.  As long as you obey me, you have freedom to speak.” 

Whether or not Peter had taken those words into mind, Thor didn’t know; he’d fallen silent again, glaring as usual as his hands flickered threateningly with Celestial energy.  He wanted to be left alone, Thor could tell, and that was fine - but what  _ wasn’t  _ fine was the way Peter tried to move away again and instead was struck by what seemed to be a severe bout of dizziness judging by the way he’d suddenly swayed violently and dry-retched.  

Thor didn’t like that.  Not at all. He’d done well to have chosen Peter because Peter needed someone like him, someone who treated his property with respect and carefulness.  He hated to think where Peter could have gone if it weren’t for him stepping in, so mentally, he patted himself on the back for a job well done.

“You are hungry,” Thor could only assume.  “I will bring you food. Lay down.” 

Thor left to go to the kitchen.  The living area was still lit up, so he wasn’t the only one still awake.  Sure enough, he found Clint, seated at the bar as he opened another can of beer.  Their eyes met, but Clint didn’t welcome him warmly; instead, he held a distrusting look as he watched Thor move about the kitchen to get two plates and decide what food to put on them.

Clint felt sick as he watched the way Thor grabbed the leftover pizza from the fridge.  He couldn’t keep his mouth shut now; he  _ had  _ to say  _ something _ .  “You planning on giving that guy  _ pizza _ , Thor…?” 

Thor smiled happily as he turned to face to Clint.  “Yes, of course. He is hungry.”

“You give him pizza, and you probably  _ will  _ kill him,” Clint warned.  “From the looks of him, he hasn’t been fed in who knows how long.  His intestines will probably collapse. You  _ can’t  _ just give him shit like  _ pizza,  _ man!” 

For the first time since Thor had brought Peter to the Avengers, he seemed accepting of the advice.  He nodded, and a look of concentration crossed his face as he asked, “Then what  _ do  _ I feed him, Barton?” 

“Something gentle on his stomach, like broth,” Clint explained.  “I’ll make him some broth - go give him a glass of juice to drink in the meantime.” 

Thor nodded.  He put the pizza and the plates back where he found them before he went to grab a glass from the cupboard and pour juice into it.  He’d just about exited the kitchen before Clint called him back.

“Oh, and Thor?” Clint couldn’t believe he was explaining this to  _ Thor  _ of all people, but what could he do?  He didn’t want Peter’s blood on his hands.  “Make sure he  _ sips  _ at the juice.   _ Don’t  _ let him drink it all in one go.” 

Thor nodded.  “Thank you for your help, Barton; this is all very new to me.” 

Clint nodded.  He watched Thor leave as he set about making the broth.  He couldn’t help but shake his head, though; for Peter’s sake, he hoped so badly someone would take Peter off Thor for good, because he couldn’t see this ending well. 

* * *

 

Thor stayed close by as he watched Peter eat his soup.  As he’d promised Clint he would, he made sure Peter didn’t eat it too quickly and instead took his time, but in doing so, it gave him plenty of time to ponder things.  

Thor couldn’t help but voice his thoughts.  “You are a Celestial hybrid… One of the rarest creatures one could find…  Why would Ego… want to get rid of you?”

Peter shrugged.  He didn’t respond verbally, and Thor had an idea of why that was.  With a soft command to speak, Peter _finally_ , albeit damned _reluctantly,_ allowed words to escape his lips.  “...I don’t _want_ to speak to you…”

Thor moved in annoyance, perhaps _too_ quickly because Peter flinched and recoiled away.  He spilt broth on his lap, but Peter didn’t care; all that mattered was raising his arm over his head to shield any attack thrown his way - at least, he attempted to, but the nausea and lightheadedness of starvation had him feeling like he was going to pass out.

Thor settled down at that.  Peter didn’t know him just yet, he had to remind himself; Peter just had to take his time and learn to trust Thor before he would open up to him.  He couldn’t get so mad so soon at the disrespect; Peter would _never_ trust him otherwise.

Thor took a deep breath to make sure he was speaking calmly.  “Ego is a fool, Peter. He realises no value on his servants if he thinks you were worth selling.”

“Ego’s my _dad_ …” Peter hissed, with so much resentment in his voice, he almost reminded Thor of Loki.  

Thor hummed.  “That raises more questions, Peter.  I do not understand; why would a Celestial _want_ money in the first place?”

“I said _shut up_!” Peter hissed.  It wasn’t an energy ball he threw this time, but rather his bowl of broth.  Thor was glad he’d mostly eaten it all, but still…

Such disrespect, Peter was _lucky_ Thor wasn’t a stereotypical owner, or he’d probably have been beaten black and blue for his insolence.  

“Drink your juice so we can go to bed,” was all Thor had to say about it - _coldly_.  

Peter did as he was ordered, albeit in a mixture of fear and loathing.  Thor waited until the glass was empty before he got up and turned the lights off.  Peter, unsurprisingly, slept against the very edge of the bed, as far away from Thor as he could get.  

Thor allowed it, though.  Peter’s body needed to heal first, and Thor was more than willing to give him that - after all, he _liked_ his bedmates in pristine condition so they could get the most enjoyment out of everything he had to offer.  

* * *

 

Thor was woken to the sound of crying.  He blinked and looked around in confusion, trying to work out where it was coming from; it was something he hadn’t woken to since he and Loki were young.  

Thor realised what was happening when he reached out and switched the lamp on so he could see.  Peter’s cheeks were wet with tears, his eyes squeezed tightly shut as his body quivered with the fear his nightmares invoked.

Thor wondered what Peter was dreaming about.  He didn’t have enough life experience with _hurt_ to truly have an idea, so all he could go by was that _something_ was hurting Peter.  He reached out and threaded his fingers through Peter’s filthy hair.  

A soft hum escaped Peter now as he pressed his hand into the gentle contact.  There was still distress in his expression, but it wasn’t so prominent, and Thor wasn’t ignorant enough to _not_ know that whatever comfort such a gentle touch brought him would probably never be enough to drown out the fear.  

Thor hummed a little tune as his fingers slowly threaded.  Peter gave a few twitches of acknowledgement before his eyelids fluttered open and he looked at Thor with such a tired, expectant expression, Thor didn’t even know _what_ he was expecting.  

The humming continued.  Peter’s eyes had closed again, but beneath his breath, Thor was sure he could hear him humming along softly.  

Though Thor was ignorant to the human population, he wasn’t _stupid_.  Peter had an attachment to tunes.  He wondered if it was commonplace amongst all Midgardians, or if Peter was just exclusive in that right, but he didn’t care; if that was something Peter liked, he could have as much of it as he wanted.  

With that, Thor kept up his humming until he’d fallen asleep again, excited for tomorrow when he could begin getting Peter acclimated to him.  


	3. Chapter 3

Thor was already awake long before Peter’s eyes opened that morning.  He’d been out in the kitchen, getting Bruce to help him make breakfast for Peter - another half-bowl of broth as Bruce hadn’t been willing to let him eat anything else so soon.  

“Barton told me I would have killed him if I gave him pizza.” Thor stood by the stove and stirred the broth contently as Banner cleaned up their mess.  

Bruce nodded.  “You would have, Thor…  He’s lost a lot of weight; he’s  _ had  _ to have been starved for a while…” 

Thor looked down at his own body; muscular and filled out and having never known what it was like to go hungry.  He cocked his head to the side. “When can I start to feed him properly? He is mine; he will eat nothing I will not touch myself.” 

On one hand, Bruce was glad that Thor would at least be feeding Peter properly.  On the  _ other  _ hand, to hear his friend talk about another living person like he were nothing but a possession…  

Bruce would have to keep a close eye on Thor because if he were  _ at least  _ going to be looking after Peter well enough to want to feed him only quality foods, as long as they could get it through Thor’s head to treat Peter with basic human necessity - and not  _ rape  _ him - he probably wouldn’t be  _ too  _ horrible to Peter. 

“As long as you let him keep sipping at broth and juice throughout the day, I’ll show you how to cook him an egg tomorrow,” Bruce said gently.  He came back to the stove and peered into the saucepan. “Your broth is ready. You can make him another bowl in an hour or two - but not too much.” 

Thor nodded.  He took the awaiting bowl from the counter and went straight to his bedroom.  He’d opened the door and barely stepped past the threshold, but within an instant, he found himself ducking to avoid the ball of Celestial energy that had been thrown at his head.  

Thor  _ wasn’t  _ happy.  He had half a mind to take the broth away and smack some respect into his new pet - but discipline could come later; Peter had to be fed first.  

“Here.  I have your breakfast.” Thor sat on the edge of the bed next to Peter.  He passed over the broth before he reached out to smooth back stray curls of hair from Peter’s forehead.  Despite his annoyance from only moments ago, he still smiled. “You are so beautiful, Peter. I am pleased I got to buy you; you will make a beautiful bed partner for me.” 

Peter cringed, but it was the only response Thor received.  He said nothing until he was given the command to speak, but even then, he hesitated.  He stirred his broth absentmindedly with his spoon before he muttered, “Just fuck off… I’m no pet…” 

Thor laughed.  Not in amusement or happiness; whatever he had playing through his mind earned Peter only cold, raucous laughter that sent chills down his spine. 

And then, Thor stopped laughing.  His demeanour had changed completely, and Peter found himself  _ very  _ fucking afraid.  “You will be whatever I  _ wish  _ for you to be.  Now eat your breakfast; you will be given your first job once you have eaten.” 

Peter, who knew all too well what happens when an order is disobeyed, ate his broth quietly, but it wasn’t without the hateful glances at Thor.  Thor, who seemed pleased that Peter was listening to him now, left the bed so he could exit the bedroom - probably to go feed his own face, Peter loathingly considered.  

But of course, whatever hope that Peter had he’d be left alone vanished after what felt like  _ far  _ too soon when Thor returned, looking immensely pleased with himself.  Peter couldn’t help it; with a low growl in the back of his throat, he snarled, “You go and kick some puppies, Goldilocks?” 

Thor’s smile never left as he cocked his head to the side.  “Hmm? What are puppies?” 

Peter mumbled something under his breath.  “...”

Thor’s lips pursed in displeasure, and he reached out to grab Peter’s jaw.  He didn’t squeeze - not as hard as he was capable of doing so anyway - as he coldly demanded, “I asked you, Peter.  I do not wish to hurt you, but I have never done well with insolence. Now. I ask you again. What are  _ puppies _ .” 

Peter was no fool to not be able to tell an empty threat from a real one.  He winced and looked away as he tried to speak beneath the fingers that almost  _ were  _ hurting his jaw.  “Puppies! Baby dogs!  Jesus,  _ everyone  _ knows what puppies are, man!” 

“ _ I  _ do not, which is why I  _ asked _ ,” Thor hissed.  “You would do well to understand that you are beneath me,  _ Midgardian _ .  I am a  _ prince _ , and while you inherit Celestial genes, you are nothing but a hybrid.  You could never consider yourself as a god.” 

“Don’t call me a Midgardian like it’s an  _ insult _ !” Peter screamed.  Tears welled up in his eyes, but Thor was ignorant to them, unable to understand even the very  _ concept  _ that perhaps Peter  _ didn’t  _ hold much self-esteem with these matters.  “Don’t even call me  _ Terran _ , asshole!  I’m  _ human _ !” 

“You are a rare mix…  But at the end of the day, your status is  _ low,  _ Midgardian,” Thor warned.  “You should be  _ honoured  _ a perfect being such as myself would even look  _ twice  _ at you.  I could have left you there - and if I did, who knows  _ what  _ could have bought you.  But I have fed you and had you  _ cared  _ for, and you are ungrateful for it!” 

“ _ I’m not a slave _ !” Peter bellowed.  

Thor sneered.  He shook his head.  “You have  _ will _ , Peter.  Strong will.  I like that in you.  But thralls should be quiet and obedient to their masters.” 

“I’m  _ not  _ your fucking  _ thrall _ !” Peter screamed.  

Thor’s hand shot out, so fast, Peter didn’t even see it coming.  He clasped his fingers tight around Peter’s wrist and squeezed, earning a howl of pain from Peter.  He released the pressure until he was loosely holding the thin wrist in his hand. “There. You see?  Nothing is broken. But you understand now you are below me. I could  _ hurt  _ you, Peter.  I will not. But I  _ could _ .  If you force my hand to discipline you, I promise you you will not enjoy it.  But if you are obedient to me, you will never know pain so long as you live. Do you understand me?”  

“ _ Fuck you _ ,” Peter snarled.  “Just  _ fuck you _ .” 

Thor chuckled.  “I believe the plan is that  _ I  _ fuck  _ you _ , Peter.  Now,  _ eat _ .” 

Thor remained in the bedroom with Peter, watching as he ate his broth loathingly.  He waited until the bowl was empty before he took it away and instructed Peter to run him a bath. 

Peter’s face crinkled into a silent snarl, but he did as he was told.  He rolled himself off the bed and stumbled into the bathroom, and though he knew better - he’d been  _ taught  _ better! - he turned only the hot water faucet.  

...But the more the tub filled with steaming hot water, the more anxiety settled in Peter’s stomach as he remembered just how savage punishments truly were.  He turned off the hot water and replaced it with cold, hoping it would cool in time before Thor would notice.

Alas, Peter’s wrongdoing hadn’t been covered up, because as soon as Thor stepped beside the tub, his nose crinkled in displeasure.  His gaze fixed on Peter, and coldly, he demanded, “Put your hand in the water.” 

“What?  No!” Peter startled.  His eyes widened and his nostrils flared at the very thought of obeying - if he put his hand in there, it would be fucking  _ burnt _ , man!  

Thor growled.  His hand shot out and snatched Peter’s wrist to pull it towards the bath water.  Peter screamed in frightened anticipation as memories of previous ‘punishments’ flooded his mind - but to his horror, shock and  _ confusion,  _ Thor didn’t put his hand in there; he simply held it above the water and growled, “If  _ you  _ will not put your hand in there, why would I  _ sit  _ in it, Peter?” 

Peter flinched when he felt Thor let go of his hand.  He was unashamed of the soft snivels that escaped him as he fell backwards, and he didn’t even notice the tears that trailed down his cheeks as he stared at Thor and tried to settle his harsh breathing.  

Thor’s eyes narrowed as he regarded Peter.  “I have a lot of patience, Peter, but you are truly testing me.  If you continue to act this way, I will have no choice but to reprimand you.  You have until the end of the day to stop trying me, Peter. It is in your best interests to do so.” 

Peter didn’t respond; he only stared at Thor frozeningly as Thor undressed himself. His body trembled as he knew just how lucky he was right now; Thor could so easily have been like everyone else and forced him to undress Thor - but instead, Thor seemed as if he could have forgotten Peter even  _ existed.  _

Thor stepped into the tub and relaxed into the water.  He looked at Peter, but Peter couldn’t decipher the look on his face. “You may return to the bedroom. You will bathe yourself once I am clean and dressed.” 

Peter couldn’t have left fast enough.  He slammed the bathroom door shut behind him, but despite his exit, his face twisted into stoicness, as if the emotion he’d displayed so readily only moments ago had been locked away in the deepest recesses of his mind.  

In a way, they  _ had  _ been.  It wasn’t common for Peter to show emotion; keeping it all inside had been how he’d survived for so long.

It was just… 

There was something about Thor that was so  _ different  _ to everyone else - and if that were good or bad, he truly didn’t know what to think.  

* * *

 

Peter had gone back to his bed by the time Thor had returned.  He sat, cross-legged on the mattress as he stared blankly at his lap, and even at Thor’s approach, he barely moved.  

Thor, however, smiled brightly as he took a seat next to Peter - and the fact that he wasn’t even acknowledged seemingly did nothing to deter his joy. 

“Peter~”  Thor reached out and grasped Peter’s shoulders to lay him down.  Once Peter was on his back, Thor rolled him onto his stomach and grasped Peter’s robe to reveal his rear.  He earned a whimper now, the first sign of acknowledgement since his re-entry, but that was okay, Thor reached out and smoothed his hand over Peter’s head.  “Shh. I am simply checking your healing process. Relax.” 

Peter  _ didn’t  _ relax, but he put up no fight - if he’d been conditioned to accept sex from anyone and everyone, Thor knew he’d have to break that habit and teach Peter to accept sex only from  _ him _ .  

But Thor couldn’t think too much on that because once he’d grabbed Peter’s cheeks and gently spread them to reveal his entrance, Thor was deeply saddened to see the red, swollen mess with visible tears even on the outside.  “Peter…” 

Peter kept his eyes staring forward, away from Thor and focused instead on the bed head.  A slight shake entered his body. “...” 

“Peter.” Thor grabbed Peter’s shoulders and rolled him onto his back.  Firmly, he commanded, “Peter,  _ speak _ .  Who did this to you?” 

Peter blinked slowly a few times before his eyes hesitantly met Thor’s.  He looked away as he licked his lips so he could mumble, “Don’t wanna talk ‘bout it…” 

“ _ Tell me _ .” Thor commanded again.  

A single tear rolled down Peter’s cheek as he shook his head.  “Punish me if you want… But I’m  _ not  _ talking about it…” 

Thor growled.  He had half a mind to smack Peter silly until he told him everything - but at the frightened,  _ pained  _ expression on Peter’s face, he realised he would let it go for now.  He would get Peter to talk eventually, but for now, he had to focus on getting Peter better and teaching him his duties.  


	4. Chapter 4

Peter was a fast learner, Thor found.  Despite his disobedient, rebellious nature, he  _ could  _ be trained - but the more Thor thought about how people would rather  _ beat  _ Peter than train him properly, the angrier he became; Peter would get there in the end, but his tongue needed to be tamed. 

“Peter.” Thor was standing at the bed, towering over Peter as Peter sneered back at him, hiding beneath the blankets. “You will accompany me tonight.” 

“Where, to your tower?” Peter spat. He could see from the look on Thor’s face he didn’t understand, but it didn’t deter him from continuing. “Fuck you, Rapunzel; I hope the dragon  _ eats  _ you.” 

Thor chuckled lightheartedly. “I have met dragons over the years. Even  _ one  _ has yet to succeed in harming me.” 

Peter didn’t move in the slightest; he had no intention of leaving his bed, just the way it had been for the week he’d been in it.  “That’s a shame; I’d settle for your fingers bein’ bitten off…”

Thor knew there weren’t many masters out there who would tolerate the kind of tongue Peter had. Peter truly didn’t understand just how lucky he was to have been bought by Thor; anyone else most likely would have cut Peter’s tongue off by now at the very minimum.  “Peter, I assure you that it will not be a dragon that brings my downfall. Now get up and dress; Banner has brought me your clothing after washing it.” 

Peter pretended not to hear Thor as he rolled onto his side and stared out of the rain-lashed window.  His eyes focused on the rippling of the sea in the distance, sloshing back and forth violently from the storm rumbling above.  “...”

Thor’s eyes narrowed. He grabbed Peter’s biceps and forced him out from the blankets so he was standing before Thor.  His tone was strained as he growled, “What did I say about ignoring me, Peter?” 

Peter looked away as every trace of emotion vanished beneath a blank slate. Even his tone seemed dead as he drawled, “That you will make me regret challenging you.” 

“Yes.” Thor’s fingers dug into Peter’s flesh as he leaned in closer. “I  _ did _ .” 

A flicker of fear crossed Peter’s face, but again, it was locked away as Thor dragged him out to the balcony. He was aware of his body beginning to tremble as he considered what Thor might possibly do to him. Would he be thrown off the tower?  Tied to the railings by his ankle and left to dangle upside down? 

“A hybrid though you may be, it is unlikely you will die if I were to toss you off the top of the building,” Thor growled. “Alas, it will still cause you immense pain.” 

Peter gulped heavily as fear returned to his expression.  He looked over the railing to see the giant drop beneath him, and for the first time in his life, he felt too afraid to be up so high. 

Peter looked back to Thor, and in a tiny, pleading tone, he murmured, “Please, man… I-I’m sorry… I-I wanna go back inside now…” 

Thor shook his head. There was remorse in his tone as he forced Peter over the railings and onto the very edge. He ignored Peter’s now-desperate pleads. “You have forced this, Peter. Believe me, it is not something I wish to have to inflict upon you.  But you still have yet to learn your place.”

With that, Peter screamed as he was shoved over the edge.  He dangled in the air, screaming desperately from where he’d grabbed onto the railings to keep himself from falling. Tears streamed down his cheeks as he felt Thor forcing his fingers away from the railings one-by-one until he was hanging on only by a few fingers of one hand. 

“Thor!” Peter screamed. “Please! I’m sorry! I’m sorry!” 

Peter’s panic consumed him so terribly, he could no longer focus on anything but the way his fingers were slipping off the wet bars, spelling out his imminent fall. 

But, when his fingers finally did give way and he felt his body falling, he almost thought he  _ had  _ died when he felt something warm wrap around his wrist and hold him in mid-air.

“T-Thor…!” Peter whimpered as he stared up into Thor’s eyes.  “I-I’m s-sorry…”

“Are you?” Thor rocked Peter through the air as easily as dusting off bed sheets.  “Or should I let you fall further for you to learn your lesson?” 

“No!” Peter wailed.  His tears came harder when he heard the balcony doors sliding open from behind Thor - had the others heard his screaming and come to investigate?  “Please, Thor! I’m sorry! I’m sorry!” 

Thor didn’t respond for several moments as his gaze pierced through Peter’s very existence. Finally, he murmured softly, “I believe you, Peter.” 

Peter continued wailing to himself as he was pulled back up onto solid ground. He snivelled pitifully as he threw himself at Thor’s chest, wrapping his arms around the god who had thrown him off the building in the first place. 

Peter didn’t care about that, though; he desperately needed comfort, and  _ Thor  _ had been the one to pull him back up… 

“I’m sorry…” Peter chanted weakly into Thor’s chest as he continued to sob and tremble. “I’m sorry… I’m sorry…” 

Thor paid no attention to the Avengers gathered around them, watching in disbelief and horror; instead, he kissed Peter’s head and wrapped his arms around him in a warm embrace.  “Shh. I believe you are sorry now, Peter. Do not cry; it is okay. It is over. You are safe now.” 

Peter’s sobbing never ceased as they stayed out there on the balcony. His mind raced with memories that terrified him, and he didn’t care who he was hugging; he could have been hugging Satan himself and he wouldn’t care so long as he felt as if he were being comforted, even if only slightly. 

The Avengers stayed silent, not a single one of them knowing what the  _ hell  _ they were supposed to say about this - too shocked by the actions of their friend they’d thought was  _ harmless _ to even  _ think _ .  But  _ Peter  _ didn’t care  _ what  _ they thought; yes, Thor had been the one to throw him overboard - but  _ Thor  _ was also the one who had caught him, pulled him to safety, and now was hugging him and whispering reassurances to him and peppering his head with light kisses. 

But Peter… had a mind so cracked and frayed, he didn’t understand what was wrong with his reasoning, or that he  _ wasn’t  _ supposed to see Thor in such light after what he’d just done. 

Peter’s mind had been broken long ago.  He’d had the same trouble with his abductor, really; shown a little bit of kindness and then Peter would latch on in desperate search for the love and gentleness he hadn’t had since his mother had died. 

“I’m sorry…” Peter whimpered again.  When Thor kissed his forehead, Peter closed his eyes and leant into it, moaning loudly as his body craved for a touch that didn’t hurt him. 

“Shh,” Thor whispered.  “You are a good boy, Peter; you are learning.  I do not enjoy having to punish you. This has hurt me as much as it has hurt you.  Good boy.”

Peter continued sobbing until he felt Thor’s strong arms pick him up and carry him back to the bed to dress him in his own clothing.  Peter didn’t protest - he  _ couldn’t.  _ He just sat complacently beneath Thor’s ministrations, his mind dulled as he told himself over and over again that Thor  _ surely  _ liked him better than  _ Ego  _ had, because Ego would have left him falling. 

Peter, who couldn’t stop trembling, stood when Thor forced him to. He followed behind Thor as he stared ahead blankly with dead eyes, seeing but not  _ acknowledging  _ as he made sure to stand in Thor’s shadow like the  _ nothing  _ he was. 

“I am sorry I had to punish you like that,” Thor murmured to him as they walked.  “But you understand now. You  _ forced  _ my hand, Peter.  But I did not let you get hurt.  I stopped your punishment from going too far when many others would have let you fall.  It is why I am so good to you; I will teach you, but I will only hurt you under the most extreme of circumstances.  I did not harm you; I simply…  _ taught  _ you.”

Peter gave an erratic nod of agreement as he wrapped his arms around his chest to hug himself.  “...” 

Thor stopped walking now so he could tell Peter in privacy, “It is because I care about you.  And now that you understand I will not hesitate to punish you, you will pleasure me tonight in our bed.  I understand you are still healing. But you have a mouth and two hands. You will use those on me.” 

Peter looked like he could have passed for a real zombie at the lifeless look on his face, but still, he nodded. Was he even taking in the reality surrounding him, or had his mind just shut itself down after what had happened? 

Peter didn’t know. Peter didn’t  _ care _ , because all that mattered was Thor had  _ caught  _ him. 

* * *

The living area was quiet aside from the storm still lashing out at the city.  Most of the other Avengers had disappeared, either gone home for the night or somewhere else in the building doing their own thing - and while it was Thor’s actions that had caused their absenses, no one able to stomach being around him, Thor was completely oblivious and convinced what he had done made him some sort of  _ god _ . 

But  _ Tony  _ could still stick around, and he knew Steve was on stand-by, observing over the monitors in another room so he could formulate how he could help Peter. 

Even Tony was sick to his gut, through.  Listening to the way Thor rambled on to Peter about why he was such a good “master” and Peter would learn to love him one day, Tony was close to throwing up. 

And then, it happened.  The situation that pushed Tony so far over the edge, his throat hurt from the force of his yelling. 

“Thor!  Get the fuck away from him!” Tony screamed as he got to his feet, ready to get physical if he had to.  

Thor narrowed his eyes in annoyance as he pulled his tongue from out of Peter’s throat to glare at Tony. “Can I help you with something?” 

Tony’s screams were so incoherent, no sense would have been made if Steve hadn’t come back, wearing the look of utmost betrayal as he pointed accusingly at Thor and growled, “You need to  _ stop _ .” 

Thor’s sneer was deadly as he regarded his two friends.  The hold he had on Peter was possessive, and when he responded, his icy tone would have had lesser men running for the hills.  “He is  _ mine  _ to do whatever I wish with.” 

“Get  _ fucked  _ he is!” Tony screamed.  “He’s a fucking  _ human!  _  And you’re treating him like he’s no better than the shit on the bottom of your fucking  _ shoes _ !” 

“Thor, don’t you  _ realise  _ what you’re doing to him?” Steve almost pleaded.  “You’re going to mess him up so badly, he’ll  _ kill  _ himself.” 

“He will not because he will be  _ glad  _ he has me!” Thor hissed.  

“That’s fucking it!” Tony roared.  He stomped forward and snatched Thor’s wrist into a sharp tug, not caring if the god were to punch him; he had to put a stop to this because they’d let it go on too fucking long.  “Rogers, you stay here with the kid!” 

Thor was not far at all from knocking both of them out, and if it had been anyone else outside of the Avengers who had grabbed him so  _ casually,  _ like he was nothing more than a  _ peasant _ , Thor  _ would  _ have had them on the ground already.  

...But Tony was a friend, and he knew he couldn’t just go punching his friends.  

“If you are trying to take Peter away from me, you  _ will  _ regret it,” Thor snarled.  He snatched his wrist from Tony’s grasp to save his dignity, and reluctantly he followed behind to see what Tony was going to do. 

Tony mumbled under his breath, and it was the only response Thor got until they were standing in one of the offices, before a computer with the door locked to keep everyone else out.  

Tony pointed to the desk chair. His voice was full of loathing as he growled, “ _ Sit _ .”

Thor turned his nose up and refused to obey. Instead, he narrowed his eyes and spat back, “You do not order me around,  _ Midgardian _ .” 

Tony ignored the comment. He loaded the computer up to get to YouTube, and as he did so, he hissed, “You think it’s  _ right  _ to treat someone the way you are treating Peter?  Did you not  _ see  _ the way his body was tensed with your goddamn  _ tongue  _ in his throat?  He doesn’t want you, Thor - and before you tell me that’s impossible because  _ everyone  _ wants you, let me break it to you, Shakespeare…  The world doesn’t  _ revolve  _ around  _ you _ . You don’t  _ get  _ everything handed to you on a silver platter.” 

“I disagree; I have always gotten everything I have wanted,” Thor snobbily argued. 

“Yeah?  Well prepare yourself for disappointment.” Tony turned the computer monitor to face Thor before he pressed play on the YouTube video he had loaded up.  “This is going to be  _ Peter  _ if you don’t fucking leave him alone.” 

Thor sneered, but he allowed Tony to show him the video anyway.  But the more he watched it, the more he realised  _ why  _ Tony had shown it to him; Peter must be as sad as the people in the screen were, crying and mourning for their lost innocence. 

When Thor turned away, he was oddly silent.  He kept his back to Tony as he stared at the office door.  “...” 

Tony stopped the video.  His tone was still hard, but there was noticeable softness within it now as he stated, “Whether you want to acknowledge it or not, Peter’s mind is scarred.  You want him to love you? Then fucking  _ give him reason to love you! _ ” 

“...” Thor’s mind continued to tick over. 

“Throwing him off a goddamned  _ tower  _ is only going to make you hate him more,” Tony pointed out.  “And honestly, when we saw that…  _ We  _ hated you for it, too, buddy.”

Thor hummed.  He didn’t bother looking over his shoulder as he left the room and announced, “I will go to my room to think things over.  If even a  _ hair  _ on Peter’s head is harmed, I will ensure the offender loses their fingers for it.” 

Tony watched Thor go. He hoped he’d gotten  _ some  _ sense into Thor - but the more he thought about it, the more he remembered… 

Fifteen-hundred years of entitlement  _ surely  _ couldn’t be undone in five minutes of YouTube… 

And even though Tony would never know it, he was right; as Thor had promised Peter earlier, Peter had made good use of his body - and Thor didn’t understand why his concubine continued to tremble even hours after. 


	5. Chapter 5

Thor didn’t like to share.  He was possessive by nature, so it was natural it extended to Peter, as well - the only problem was, Peter didn’t seem to care that Thor didn’t want to share him.  

“Peter.” Thor’s voice rumbled powerfully in his chest as he glared at Peter, curled up beneath a blanket on the couch,  _ too close _ to Steve and Bruce on the same couch.  His eyes wandered over the outline of Peter’s body before his gaze narrowed and he growled, “To our bedroom.” 

“You know, you don’t have to be so goddamn  _ controlling  _ all the time!” Clint snapped from where he sat on one of the other couches across from Peter.  “What’s wrong with him being out here with us? Better him socialising than being locked away in his room like a prisoner!” 

Thor didn’t understand why his friends seemed to hate him now.  He couldn’t recall ever doing anything to hurt them, but that wasn’t the important thing at the current moment; if they had plans to keep Peter for themselves, he’d…! 

“Barton, thank you for your input, but Peter is  _ mine _ ,” Thor growled.  He ignored the way Peter seemed to slip further beneath the blanket in an attempt to hide; he could resolve that in the privacy of their bedroom later.  “I do not want him around anyone else - he is solely for  _ my  _ pleasure and nobody else’s.” 

“You’re  _ sick _ .” Natasha’s face scrunched up.  “You’re talking about a  _ human  _ like he’s a blowup doll.” 

“Peter is not Midgardian - at least, not entirely.” Thor shrugged.  “In fact, he is a hybrid. A very unique one. A god, but still beneath me.” 

“Why, because you look down on the human half of him?” Steve looked heartbroken at the realisation.  

“Well,  _ yes _ .” Thor glanced around at his friends, trying to understand why they just didn’t get something so simple.  “He is mixed with something so pathetic, it is almost insulting.”

“What the fuck is wrong with you?!” Tony snapped.  “Hey, Quill! Use your god powers and kick this guy’s ass!” 

Thor sniggered.  He moved to stand by Peter’s side and touch his shoulder.  “Peter would never harm me; he has been taught better than that.  He knows that if he -” 

Whatever Thor had been about to say left his mind when a burst of energy erupted from beside him, splitting the couch in two and sending Bruce fleeing for safety.  Shouts of surprise filled the air, but Thor wasn’t pleased; he grit his teeth as he reached out to grab Peter aggressively and haul him to his feet by the shoulder.  

“Hey…  Point Break, it’s fine…” From across the room, Tony read the atmosphere.  He shared looks with the other Avengers, ready for anything - but the problem was, they had to be careful how they handled Thor, because Thor could easily wipe them all out if he so pleased.  “I’m sure it was an accident - don’t worry about it…” 

Thor sneered at Tony before he locked gazes with Peter.  “You could have harmed Banner and Rogers with your little stunt.  You are lucky you only ruined the couch, but I fear you must be taught yet another lesson…” 

It was at those words Thor became aware of everyone else getting on the defensive.  Clint’s bow was pointed at him, Bruce was looking greener than he should be for such an uneventful day, and Natasha, Steve and Tony’s body language was that of an enraged predator.  

“You throw him off another balcony…” Tony’s suit found its way onto his body, “...and we’re done with you, Thor.” 

Thor laughed.  He shook his head, and too happily for the situation he was in, he boomed, “Peter has not done anything for me to have to punish him like that!  He has been a very good boy since then - he has not required such severe training again. I hate to see him so upset, friend Stark. I truly do. But Peter is in trouble, and I ask for you all to stay out of it - it is between Peter and I.” 

“Whatever you’re planning to do to him, we have the right to know about,” Tony snapped.  “This is  _ my  _ place, and I have the right to know what you assholes all do in it!” 

An amused smirk crossed Thor’s face.  “You wish to watch me make love to Peter?” 

Tony’s face paled for a few moments before he snapped again, “What kind of sick punishment is that?!” 

“You would rather me throw him from the tower again?” Thor cocked his head to the side. “I do not wish any harm on my Peter, truly. I am very fond of him.” 

“If that were true, you’d leave him alone!” Steve threw his hands up in the air as he glared furiously at Thor.  “You’re harming him with your  _ presence _ !  And you don’t want to realise that!” 

Thor’s eyes narrowed, and he spat out, “If you wish for me to prove I care about him, then you all shall be privy to his punishment.” 

“He doesn’t  _ need  _ a punishment for you fucking  _ upsetting  _ him!” Clint roared.  “It was a  _ couch _ !  It can be replaced!” 

Thor ignored his friend in favour of turning to Peter and digging his fingers sharply into his pet’s shoulder.  His tone was hard as he growled, “You think you can make a fool of me, Peter? In front of my  _ friends _ ?  I took you with me because I did not want you going to someone to  _ abuse  _ you.  I  _ cared  _ for your wellbeing when everyone walked  _ past  _ you, and  _ this  _ is how you repay me for my kindness.” 

Peter, who’d been staring at his feet and chewing his lip, finally lifted his head to face Thor.  His eyes burned with rage, and his voice was almost choked as he spat out his loathing response. “You only did that so you could  _ fuck  _ me.  You didn’t do it for  _ me;  _ you did it for yourself, you fucking selfish bastard!  Don’t talk about me like I’m a  _ dog _ !”

A flicker of hurt crossed Thor’s face, but it disappeared just as quickly as it had appeared.  He shook his head, and though his tone was still hard, there was a noticeable softening to it. “If I didn’t like you, Peter, I would never have taken you with me.  I can get sex from anyone I want it from - I would never have had to resort to  _ buying  _ myself a toy.  You think too highly of yourself.  It was for your wellbeing and it happened to convenience me as well.” 

“Fuck you, you self-centred prick!  I’d have rather  _ died  _ than have to be stuck with you!”

The hurt on Thor’s face was paramount, but it quickly vanished when his expression twisted into an irate snarl, and he threw his body weight onto Peter to pin him down with one hand around his throat. 

“Thor!” Steve was the first one over to try and push Thor away from Peter, but all it accomplished was Thor swiping his arm out to the side and knocking Steve away like he was nothing.  “Thor, stop it! Let him go!” 

Thor was ignorant to his friends trying to separate him from Peter; he was barely even conscious of the way he continuously shrugged them away.  He leant in close to Peter’s face, his hot breath billowing against sickly pale flesh as he hissed, “I could crush your throat as easily as a grape, Peter.  You have certainly tempted me to do so. But if I did not care for you, my hand would not be as loose against your throat as it is, Peter.” 

As if to prove his point, Thor flexed his hand to show just how gentle a hold he had on him.  Peter still winced, but he glared angrily back at Thor, refusing to back down despite the tension in his body.  

“You don’t care for me; you care only if I put out for you or not,” Peter hissed back.  

“Believe me, Peter, if I did not care for someone, and they would not give me sex, they would not be in my  _ life _ ,” Thor snarled back.  “Let alone after all the disrespect given to me.  You are the only one who has ever gotten away with treating me as you have, Peter - and for good reason.” 

“You said it yourself - this is nothing but a convenience for you!”  Peter couldn’t stop himself from swinging his fist into Thor’s face, his hand engulfed in Celestial energy.  He couldn’t feel anything as his hand made contact with Thor’s mouth; none of the relief, or the comfort he thought he would feel at fighting against his master for once, and he couldn’t help but wonder; had it been worth it…?

Thor snarled.  He ignored the blood that dribbled from his split lip; a minor inconvenience but really no harm done - just such utter disrespect...  He tightened his grip on Peter’s throat and lifted him from the couch, holding him in the air by his neck. “You would think… that after  _ everything  _ I have done for you and put up with… that I would see you simply as a  _ convenience _ ?” 

“They were  _ your  _ words, fucker!” 

“And you did not stop to think that perhaps I could not  _ bare  _ to express my affection for you?!” Thor roared.  “To  _ you _ ?!  To my  _ friends _ ?!” 

“Thor, stop it!” Steve was trying to pull Thor’s hand from Peter’s throat.  “Thor! Let him go! You’re talking nonsense!” 

A single tear rolled down Peter’s cheek as his expression twisted into something agonised and loathing.  “If this is what affection is, then  _ fuck affection _ !  I don’t want any!  I just want to  _ die! _ ” 

“Thor!” Steve had cracked at those words.  He bristled with fury, and though he had never wanted to hurt someone he cared about before, he couldn’t stop himself from grabbing his shield from the couch and smacking Thor as hard as he could in the face with it.  “Thor! Enough! Let him go!” 

Thor dropped Peter to the ground so he could turn around and face Steve.  “Do not hit me again! You will stay out of this; it does not concern any of you!” 

“It  _ does  _ concern us when we’ve had enough of your shit, Thor!” Tony roared.  “You treat the guy like crap and then have the nerve to tell him it’s because you like him!  What sick, fucked up way of thinking is that?! This isn’t fucking  _ grade school! _ ” 

“You lot are mortals!” Thor snapped back.  “You will  _ never  _ understand!  You will not live  _ half  _ as long as I will - you will never  _ understand  _ the things I understand!” 

Steve was kneeling next to Peter, reaching out to him to comfort him, but Peter kept backing away, snarling.  “Don’t fuckin’  _ touch  _ me!” 

Steve ignored Peter’s angry protests and pulled him into his arms with hopes of getting him away from Thor.  He pretended not to notice the way Peter locked up, as if his mind had blanked and his body had frozen in response.  What Steve  _ couldn’t  _ ignore, however, was the scream of horror that erupted without warning past Peter’s lips.  

“Get off him!” Thor roared as he grabbed Peter by the shoulder and attempted to rip him from Steve’s hold.  All it did was make Peter scream louder, this time in pain as the combined superhuman strength played tug of war with him and dislocated his spine. 

The onlookers fell into shocked horror at the way Steve still kept Peter on his lap, with his arms wrapped around his waist to keep him in place while Thor had frozen with his hands around Peter’s ribs.  Peter’s body was bent on an awkward, unnatural angle from where he’d been pulled at, and it was almost frightening to see. 

The heavy silence - minus Peter’s screaming - was broken by the Hulk’s emergence.  Tony followed suit at that, getting Thor away from Peter so he could kneel by Steve’s side and assess the damage.

“I’m getting something to lay him on; don’t move him until I get back,” Tony ordered.  He took one look over his shoulder to make sure Hulk was keeping Thor at bay before he disappeared in search of a makeshift stretcher.  

Steve held Peter, his hands trembling as the stress of everything threatened to overwhelm him.  He couldn’t stand to see the pained look on Thor’s face, as if he’d just watched his beloved puppy get ran over by a car.  

But Steve couldn’t feel sorry for Thor - not when everything that had been happening lately was Thor’s doing.  In fact, they probably had a hand in this themselves; having not tried hard enough to keep Thor from Peter…

But Steve could ponder over that later; Tony had returned, and the best thing he’d been able to find was an old desk he had snapped the legs off.  

They worked to transfer Peter onto the makeshift stretcher and take him down to the medical bay.  Thor tried to follow, but with an angry shout from Tony, Thor stayed behind, looking more like a kicked puppy than Steve had ever seen him. 

“If that guy fuckin’ gets near the kid, I’m gonna  _ lose it _ ,” Tony snarled to Steve.  “Banner better get his ass down here in the next five minutes or I’m going to scream at him, too.” 

Steve could have laughed at that statement, but with such a serious issue at hand, the best he could do was offer a sombre look as he tried not to focus on Peter’s screaming.  “Kid, it’s going to be okay; we’re going to help. I promise.” 

But Peter didn’t listen, and Steve knew Peter didn’t  _ want  _ to listen.  All Steve could do was hope that they could do something to help him - and maybe…  With a bit of luck… Thor would finally leave Peter alone. 

But who was Steve trying to kid?  Thor was nothing if not pigheaded.  


	6. Chapter 6

“I want to see Peter.” 

Tony kept his arms folded against his chest as he glared Thor down.  He stood outside the door to the infirmary, his helmet down but his suit still equipped lest Thor get violent again.  He rolled his eyes at the stubborn, almost childish way Thor demanded his request. “Why should I let you see him? After we spent hours putting his vertebrae back in place, you think we’ll just let you waltz in there and fuck it up again?”

“It was an accident!” Thor argued.  “I did not mean to hurt him!” 

“As much as I hate to agree with your brother, he  _ was  _ right,” Tony gruffed.  “You can’t be trusted with a human because you can’t  _ control  _ yourself with a human!  You speak with your damn hammer - and look at where it’s gotten you!” 

Thor sneered.  His tone dropped dangerously low as he growled, “I am still training Peter, and despite what I tell him I’ll do, I would never hurt him, Stark.   _ Never _ .” 

“You just did.  Stay away from him.” 

Thor snarled.  He punched the wall beside him, uncaring as it shattered beneath his fist.  He muttered under his breath before he turned around and stomped back to his room, slamming the door closed behind him and throwing himself on the bed.  He curled up and pouted, looking very much like the spoiled brat he was.

But Thor didn’t tend to give up easily - not without a fight at least.  His stubborn nature had caused a lot of conflict between him and his father, created huge rifts that Thor had never really stopped to wonder if they were still repairable; if it came down to Peter, Thor was willing to do anything he could, no matter what.

Thor wasn’t about to give up on checking for Peter; night had long-since fallen, and he had gotten used to Peter’s warmth in his arms as they slept.  He sat up and looked around, wondering how he could get past Tony’s watchful guard and be at Peter’s side. 

It didn’t take Thor long to work out that if he was ever so careful, he could climb along the outside window ledges and get in through the window.  He wondered why Tony hadn’t thought to secure such a vulnerable point; it was a weak spot in the tower’s defence, and he had to remember to warn Tony about it at a later date.

For now, Thor had to get the window open and slip inside.

The infirmary was dark, all the lights off and curtains closed with only the rhythmic beeping of hospital equipment to disturb the occupants.  There was no one else in here apart from Peter and Thor, however, and Thor couldn’t have been more relieved about that.

Thor followed the beeping to Peter’s bed.  The darkness wasn’t making it any easier, but as he felt around for a light switch, he let out a sigh of relief when he found one just above the bed.  

The light illuminated Peter’s face, paler than it usually was as the various IVs in his arm worked to keep him comfortable.  There really wasn’t much to see; a blanket had been draped over him and hid most of his body from view - but what really got Thor was the fact that he had never seen Peter sleeping so relaxed before. 

“Peter…?” Thor reached out and put the palm of his hand against Peter’s head. He rubbed at the damaged hair that was almost filthy from lack of care.  “How are you feeling?” 

Peter didn’t wake, but his expression twisted into a grimace, as if Thor’s sudden presence had sparked nightmares in his mind.  A whimper escaped him, and Thor didn’t miss the way Peter tried curling into a ball. 

Thor sighed.  He danced his fingers through Peter’s hair for a while longer before he slid his hand down to cup the back of Peter’s neck.  Peter’s expression grew more and more panicked, but still, his eyes remained closed. 

Thor pursed his lips as he considered Peter’s condition.  Being a half Celestial meant that surely the damage would repair over time and there should be little left after a while - but how could that bring him comfort when Thor knew  _ he  _ was the cause of Peter laying here? 

Thor dipped his hand as gently as he could between Peter’s shoulders and the mattress.  He slid the tips of his fingers along Peter’s spine, feeling the tell-tale signs of stitching and bandages. 

It was then Peter woke up, with a loud keen and a helpless flail of his body Thor hoped wasn’t because of his spine. 

Peter’s wide, frightened eyes looked up at Thor, and Thor hoped it was just the glint of the light that he was seeing and there weren’t really tears about to pour down his cheeks. 

Peter’s voice was as small as his scared body language suggested it would be.  “Please, no… I-I can’t…” 

Thor raised an eyebrow.  “Pardon?” 

“I can’t…!” A helpless moan escaped Peter, and if he could move, he’d have crawled to the side and tried to escape if he could.  “Please! No more!”

Thor wasn’t sure what to think.  “What do you think I am here for, Peter?”

“For the only thing everyone wants from me…” Peter felt like he could vomit at the memories.  “Dude, I - I just want - I just want to  _ sleep _ !”

“Hush.” Thor clambered onto the bed so he could lay against Peter and hold him in his arms.  He ignored the way his lover trembled against him, the tell-tale signs that Peter was crying when his shirt felt damper than it should.  He dragged his massive hand through Peter’s hair, humming the tune he had found Peter to be most responsive to in hopes that it would bring him comfort. 

It worked, to a degree.  Peter stopped shaking, but the tears still slipped down his cheeks as he stared past Thor’s hair and up at the roof.  

Finally, Thor spoke.  “You treat me as if I am a monster.”

Peter turned his head to the side, slipping back into his obedient mannerisms.  It raised the question as to why he’d been so rebellious suddenly that day, but Thor didn’t want to linger on it too much.  

“I am not a monster.” Thor kissed Peter’s forehead, as if that alone could chase away the pain in Peter’s heart.  “I take care of you and never let you get hurt. You are just… disobedient at times, and I have to reprimand you. But I never intended on harming you as I have.  Sometimes I forget just how fragile Midguardians are.”

Peter still didn’t speak, and his eyes focused on a desk on the other side of the room.  

Thor sighed.  “There will be no sex until you recover, Peter.  It would only damage your spine further.”

Peter sniffed back a loose tear.  The tension in his body loosened ever so slightly, but still, he couldn’t trust Thor to keep to his word - no one had ever cared for his wellbeing before, and Thor had proven time and time again just how indifferent he was. 

Thor moved closer to Peter.  He rubbed his lover’s belly as he murmured, “But I still have to make it up to you, Peter - for what happened.  I can still make you feel good.”

Peter winced violently when he felt the hand leave his stomach so it could instead prod two fingers at his entrance.  He squeezed his eyes shut, his legs clamping together out of instinct, but he opened them when Thor’s gentle hand pushed his knees apart; he knew the consequences of denying sex from everyone else, and he didn’t want to find out just what Thor could do to him if he tried to withhold it from him as well.

“Easy, just relax,” Thor murmured.  He looked around in search of something he could use as lubricant, but at the realisation he really didn’t have anything, he spat on his fingers and hoped they’d stay wet for long enough to stretch Peter open. 

Peter’s eyes snapped back to Thor’s face in terror at the first breach.  He shuddered in pain and fear, but he said nothing; he knew better to. He tried to ignore the burning in his spine as Thor’s giant hand pushed fingers in and out of him, as he if he were searching for something. 

Thor’s eyes stayed focused on his fingers moving in and out of Peter.  He licked his lips, and with his free hand, he undid the zip of his jeans and reached in to pull his arousal out and stroke unimpeded.  He moaned softly, imagining Peter only too eager to do this to him,  _ begging  _ for it - but the reality was, Peter only stared back at him, mouth agape and his eyes wide.

Thor frowned.  He started thrusting his fingers harder now, trying to force the pleasure through Peter’s body because clearly he was hitting the right spot judging by Peter’s growing erection. 

But Peter was anything  _ but  _ aroused.  Trapped in his mind, his body shaking once more, Peter  _ couldn’t  _ feel anything but the pain he sometimes questioned the reality of.  Was there really pain, or was it all in his head? Was he really feeling  _ anything _ right now?

But the biggest question of all was, why was Peter getting hard when he resented this more than anything else in his life? 

Thor was growing frustrated.  Not with Peter, but with himself.  He’d never had problems pleasuring someone before, but Peter didn’t seem to be enjoying himself as much as Thor was.  

Thor abandoned his own erection in favour of wrapping his hand around Peter, pumping him quickly.  But even that didn’t seem to do anything for Peter, and when he came, it was with a distressed, yet almost  _ vacant  _ expression, as if he only knew what had happened on a subconscious level. 

Thor frowned.  He waited until Peter had spilt the last remaining drops before he reached into the pocket of his hoodie and pulled out a handkerchief.  He cleaned Peter up, leaving no trace of what had happened behind and then tucking him back into his pants. 

A heavy sigh filled the air as Thor slumped back down beside Peter.  He held him close again, his erection pressing hard against Peter’s thigh, but he ignored it in favour of holding Peter. “Why did you not enjoy it, Peter?  Do you find me to be a bad lover?”

The damn broke loose at those words. Peter’s loud sobs filled the air as he turned his head to hide his face against Thor’s chest. His shaking hand held Thor’s hoodie in a death grip as he cried, getting out so many years’ worth of emotion in one sitting. 

“Peter?” Thor held Peter tight, dragging his fingers through the brown curls once again. “Why are you crying?” 

Peter’s voice was choked with emotion as he sobbed out, “P-please, n-no more…!  I-I can’t handle it…!”

Thor was confused, not able to understand.  But regardless, he held Peter close, humming to him and playing with his hair long into the hours Peter had cried himself into sleep. 

Thor didn’t understand.  But Peter wasn’t allowed to cry without reason, and Thor wanted to kill whoever had dared hurt  _ his  _ Peter enough to make him weep so much. 


	7. Chapter 7

Thor was relieved that Peter’s back had made a full recovery - or at least, he was sure it had because he hadn’t heard Peter complaining about it now that he was back to moving about on his own.  

Peter wasn’t glad, though.  Recovering meant that Thor was expectant of him again, and quite frankly, Peter was tired of having to follow Thor around everywhere he went.  He wished that Thor would just leave him alone, leave him by himself in the bedroom so he could sleep away the life he feared he was cursed to forever suffer.  

But of course, Thor wouldn’t have that, and after a tiring return from Asgard, Peter wanted nothing more than to curl up in bed and never have to wake again. 

“It is odd that nobody is home,” Thor observed from where he stood in the elevator of Stark Tower, having scoured all the floors in search of someone.  He gave a shrug, and with a smile at his brother who was still accompanying him also, announced, “We will sit in the living area.” 

Peter let out a loud groan.  His eyes watered and burned from exhaustion, but still, he dragged his feet to follow behind Thor as he was led to the couches.  He waited until both Loki and Thor had seated themselves before he sat as far away as possible on the other end, but alas, it was useless, as he should have known it would be.

“Peter.” Thor patted the empty seat next to him.  “Come.” 

With a heavy sigh, Peter reluctantly moved to sit next to Thor, as close as he could possibly get without creating any physical contact between them.  He didn’t want to; if he could have his own way, he’d run far, far away and never look back. But Thor liked having Peter next to him, and he proved that by wrapping his arm firmly around Peter and pulling him to rest against his side. 

Thor turned to look at Peter and smile.  He kissed Peter’s forehead, squeezing his hip affectionately before he murmured, “Are you comfortable, Peter?”

Peter gave a tired grumble he wasn’t sure was even comprehensible.  He closed his eyes and allowed his head to drop against Thor’s shoulder, too tired to do anything else.  

Thor rubbed Peter’s side gently.  “It is okay; rest now, Peter. I love you.” 

Peter was quick to fall into a light doze.  Thor held on to him, calm as Loki looked down at them both. 

“I don’t understand why you like him so much.” Loki turned his nose up in distaste.  “I swear all you want to do with him is fuck him.” 

“Loki, I have not had sex with him since I hurt his spine,” Thor admitted.  There was something in his tone that Loki recognised, but couldn’t believe he was hearing; was Thor feeling  _ shame _ ?  “He  _ cries _ .  I believe this is what friend Stark tried to warn me about, but I would not listen to him.  I never want to see Peter cry again.” 

“I assure you, brother; you  _ will  _ keep making him cry.” Loki narrowed his eyes.  “How have you not realised he can’t  _ stand  _ you?” 

Thor’s eyebrows furrowed together in annoyance.  “He does not hate me, Loki. He still is not  _ used  _ to me.  He will love me eventually.” 

“Doubtful.  I don’t like you, either.” 

A growl escaped Thor’s lips.  “Shut up.” 

An uncomfortable silence fell between them now.  Loki busied himself with pulling a scroll free from his outfit and studying it, while Thor kept his arm around Peter’s shoulders and played with the soft curls of brunet.  

Thor was comforted by Peter’s presence, so relaxed, it was easy for him to drift into deep thought.  He was almost startled by Loki’s voice from beside him, having forgotten he and Peter weren’t alone. He turned back to his brother.  “Pardon?” 

Loki huffed before he repeated his question.  “I asked, why can’t you just leave him here? He’s only dragging you down.” 

“He is  _ not _ ,” Thor growled.  He made no attempt to mask his anger at the accusation, his arm tightening around Peter as if his hold could chase away all of Peter’s pain.  “He makes me  _ happy!   _ More so than any other Asgardian has done!” 

Loki’s eyes rolled.  “You say that. But give it a few years and he will be dead.  Midgardians live such short lives, brother; you’ll -”

“- He will last me,” Thor assured confidently.  “He will not die. He will live as long as I, and probably even longer.” 

Loki’s gaze fell on Peter.  “There  _ is  _ something unusual about him…  But he is nothing more than Midgardian filth.” 

“He is part Celestial.” There was pride in Thor’s voice as he announced this, but it only annoyed Loki further.  “It is why I wanted him.” 

“You didn’t know that when you handed over money for him.”

“I did not.  But still. I wanted him.” 

“How many times are you going to change your story about him?  You can never give the same excuse twice; it changes every time someone asks you about him!  And you expect us to believe it was love at first sight when all you really wanted was a quick fuck!” 

A pained expression appeared briefly on Thor’s face before he grimaced with anger.  “Perhaps because that  _ used  _ to be somewhat true!  I  _ did  _ want to fuck him!  But I wanted to help him also!  And maybe  _ you  _ will never understand it, Loki, but I finally  _ found  _ what has been missing in my life for so long!  You of all people should understand the pain we go through when we outlive everyone we love by so long!  At least Peter will not die and leave me alone!” 

Loki muttered to himself before he stood and glared down at his brother.  “Just because  _ you  _ will not settle for another Asgardian doesn’t mean you have the right to complain about lifespans, Thor.  You refuse every Asgardian who approaches you, and now you would interbreed with him if you could. You are disgusting.  You know how important our line is to take another Asgardian - and if Odin and our mother were to ever find out what he  _ really  _ is to you, they would disown you for breaking our own law.”

Thor raised a shaking hand and pointed to the elevator.  His tone held a tremble also as he snarled, “Get out of my sight.” 

Loki snorted, but he did as instructed.  Over his shoulder, he called, “Wait until Odin finds out you can’t keep your hand out of your pants every time that thing crosses your mind.” 

“ _ Leave _ !” Thor roared.  He gave a quick glance to Peter to make sure he hadn’t been disturbed, and to his relief, Peter still slept on. 

Thor was left alone with his thoughts again, but it wasn’t a good thing this time; his body quivered in rage, and he worried that if he didn’t remove himself from the cause of his anger, it would be taken out on Peter. 

Thor left the tower quickly, joining the droves of people on the streets going about their own business.  He ignored the looks, the murmurs and the people who tried to stop him for photos; maybe his friends were right, because even  _ he  _ wasn’t sure he could be trusted with his beloved humans right now. 

The more Thor walked, the calmer he found himself, though, until he was of sound mind enough to decide that he needed to feed Peter since he himself was starting to feel slight hunger.  He found his way to one of the take-out restaurants he knew Tony often frequented, and eventually, with his arms full of bags, he made his way back to Peter. 

Peter was still asleep when Thor returned, and Loki was nowhere in sight.  Thor wasn’t concerned about his brother; Loki would show up sooner or later when he was bored, but for now, Peter had to be fed.  

“Peter~” Thor’s tone was gentle as he shook his lover’s shoulder with unusual gentleness.  “Peter, wake up~ Time to eat~” 

Peter’s eyes snapped open and looked fearfully at Thor, but they quickly closed again and an exhausted grimace crossed his face.  Thor shook him again, but still, he slept. 

“Peter.” Thor picked Peter up and sat down in his place, nursing him on his lap and holding him close.  Peter’s eyes opened weakly, only to a quarter of the way, before he groaned and snuggled in close, closing them once more. 

Thor gave up trying to wake Peter after that; he was content holding him as he ate his portion of their meal, and Peter could have the rest when he woke up.  

But when Peter  _ did  _ wake up hours later, he still refused to eat, no matter how many times Thor reassured him it was okay.  

“Peter, if you are not going to eat, then go and run me a bath.” Thor dragged his fingers through Peter’s hair.  “Quickly; I wish to retire early tonight.” 

Peter groaned loudly in weak protest.  He uncurled himself from against Thor’s chest, putting his feet on the ground and stumbling towards the elevators.  He whined softly in distress when each step caused black spots to appear in his vision, until it was getting harder and harder to see and he’d thought he’d gone blind.

From the couch, Thor looked over when he heard the loud crash.  His heart raced as he found Peter on the ground. “Peter!” 

Peter couldn’t move when Thor scooped him up into his arms; he just continued whining, wishing with everything he had that he could just die and be done with it all.  

“Oh, Peter, you  _ need  _ to eat; you are too weak!” Thor fussed as he carried Peter back to the couch.  He kept him seated firmly on his lap, with his arm around his slave’s waist to keep him in place, as he reached out with his free arm to take the glass of water he had poured for Peter earlier.  “Sip slowly, Peter, and then I will feed you.” 

Peter didn’t even have the energy to keep his mouth closed tight.  He sipped at the water, and when a spoon pressed against his lips, he parted them to let it in.  He listened as Thor told him to chew slowly, so he did, taking his time before he swallowed it weakly.  

Thor wasn’t sure he’d been so worried before as he spoon-fed Peter to try and help him get his strength back.  His eyes travelled concernedly down to Peter’s stomach, trying to pretend he didn’t notice just how much more weight he’d lost since being with Thor. 

But perhaps it was Thor’s fault this had happened; he’d known Peter hadn’t been eating, but he hadn’t tried enough to get him to eat.  

Thor sighed loudly, and regretfully, he murmured, “I apologise, Peter; I have not been a very good master to you…” 

Peter could barely react to those words; all he could do was try and press himself closer to Thor and take what little comfort from this he could.  

* * *

 

Thor had resigned himself to bathing and dressing on his own so Peter could get some rest.  He’d just pulled the plug from the tub and stepped out to take his towel when he heard Peter whimpering from the bed.  He frowned, and after quickly drying himself and dressing for bed, he came out to see what was wrong. 

“Peter?” Thor came to stand by Peter’s side of the bed.  He reached out and put his hand on his lover’s shoulder. “What is wrong?” 

Peter flinched and moved further beneath his blanket.  He sniffed back tears, wishing the blanket would protect him, but he knew it was powerless to stop anything Thor might want to do to him. 

Thor frowned at Peter’s curls that poked out from beneath the blanket.  He let out a sigh, wondering what to do, before a thought struck him. He moved to a corner of the room so he could look at the unusual contraption Tony had given him a few days prior at Thor’s casual mention of Peter seeming to enjoy music.  

Thor’s frown grew, wondering how exactly it worked; while he remembered Tony telling him it was his mother’s old record player, he’d forgotten almost all the information he’d been given on its workings. 

But alas, Thor figured it out soon enough, and with the soft flow of music in the air, he looked back to the bed.  Peter’s lump beneath the blankets seemed to have quietened down now, and Thor wondered if he was crying to himself silently instead now. 

But Thor didn’t ask; instead, he moved to turn the bedroom light off and get into bed.  He didn’t slip beneath the blankets; he left them as a barrier between he and Peter so he could instead curl his arm around him and hold him close. 

“Goodnight, Peter~” Thor murmured.  He kissed the top of Peter’s head, leaving him to hide beneath the blankets as they fell asleep.  Somewhere in the middle of the night, Thor awoke briefly to Peter moving closer to him in his sleep, and Thor just hoped it meant Peter was  coming to trust him. 


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As I always forgot to mention, I have a Twitter account for this AO3, so if anyone wants to get into contact with me for anything regarding my fics and their updates, it is https://twitter.com/Biscuit154 
> 
> ^_^

Peter’s eyes opened while it was still dark.  It was nothing new; he’d never been able to sleep through a full night ever since he’d been taken away from his mother.  

Peter laid where he was quietly, staring at Thor’s sleeping outline.  It would be so easy, he knew, to kill him while he was so vulnerable. All he had to do was find something sharp enough and he could - 

He shook his head to clear his thoughts.  He didn’t want to kill anyone; he just…! He just wanted peace… 

But  _ how  _ could he have peace when he was  _ here?!   _ Peter growled to himself, and he felt the familiar rage churn in his stomach once more.  He reached out and put his hand on Thor’s throat. Part of him expected for Thor to wake instantly and snap his neck as Ego had done to him before for such matters.  

But Thor slept on, and what really surprised Peter was the way Thor moved  _ in  _ to the contact, as if it were soothing for him. 

_ He  _ wants  _ you near him,  _ Peter thought, but he quickly chased the idea away, reminding himself that  _ nobody  _ had ever wanted him - probably not even his own  _ mother _ !  All he was good for was being fucked, and being beaten.  Nobody could want such trash like himself - not a  _ failure  _ and a  _ disgrace _ .  

Peter closed his eyes and tightened his grip on Thor’s throat.  He grimaced, his breath coming harder as he tried to focus himself.  

But Peter couldn’t do it.  Peter didn’t want to hurt anyone.  At least, not when they were so defenceless…  He would defend himself, but really… 

Peter wasn’t as aggressive as he tried to paint himself to be.  

He got out of the bed, and as quietly as he could, he crept to the corner of the room to get his coat and his boots.  He slipped them on, and once that was done, he slipped away to the door and pushed it open. He almost left without even a glance, but he did look back at Thor, if only for a second.  

But Peter wasn’t going to stick around anymore.  He’d had enough of being everyone’s pet. Maybe if he were lucky, he could find a nice cardboard box to sleep beneath - he’d rather that than have to continue this miserable existence.  

Peter left, closing the door behind him.  Back in the bedroom, Thor’s eyes snapped open, and he reached up to touch his throat as he replayed the last five minutes over in his mind.  He’d woken when he’d sensed himself being watched. He’d let Peter do as he had, wanting to see just how far he’d go - as he’d trusted, Peter hadn’t hurt him.  

But now, Thor had to take the time to work out why Peter was leaving, and what he had to do to get him back and keep him from running away ever again.

* * *

 

Peter didn’t know what time it was.  It was still dark, and his way was illuminated only by the street lights that made him feel dizzy.  It had seemed like a good idea at first, but it had quickly become apparent that after being with Ego for so long, he had forgotten everything he had once known about his home planet, and he didn’t feel safe at all.

People watched him as he walked hastily through the city with his head down and his shoulders tucked tightly.  People who looked like they were up to no good, who could only have bad intentions if they were to try and approach him. 

But still, Peter kept walking.  He walked until he found himself a quiet alley without anyone around and plenty of boxes scattered about for him to pull apart and make a bed out of.

But of course, Peter should have known the slight happiness he’d  _ finally  _ felt at being on his own wouldn’t last long, because between the rain that started to fall down on him, and the group of men who’d come into the alley, Peter felt fucking  _ miserable _ .   

“Hey, look.” 

Peter cringed at the men who’d stopped walking to instead point and sneer at him.  He pulled the cardboard higher over him, like a child hiding from the monster leaning over their bed.  He growled in warning when they ran at him, but between the five or six men who had pinned him to the ground, he felt as helpless as he had as a child, and Yondu had told his Ravager clan they all had him for an hour.  

A single tear rolled down Peter’s cheek, but when he felt a needle pierce of the flesh of his arm, his anger and loathing came back to the surface, and without even meaning to, an explosion ruptured around him.  

Peter couldn’t take it anymore.  His body quivered in uncontrollable emotion as his hand became engulfed in a ball of energy.  He screamed his rage and pain and  _ suffering  _ out as the ball formed bigger than it ever had before, and he aimed it at one of the fallen men who was peering up at him from on the ground in fear. 

Peter couldn’t help himself; his emotions were a mess, and his mind even more so.  For the second time in as many minutes, another explosion rocked Manhattan, and Peter felt his mind slip away along with it. 

* * *

 

It had been an early morning rise for the Avengers.  Fury had contacted them, told them about some crazy bastard that was going around blowing up buildings.  They’d suited up and gone to find the culprit as usual. 

Well, the Avengers all bar Thor had, anyway.  They’d looked for him, but Thor hadn’t been found, and they didn’t keep searching. 

The devastation was crazy.  Buildings collapsed and roads destroyed.  The scenes were almost something out of a post-apocalyptic movie. 

When they found who they were looking for, it made sense. 

“Of all people I was expecting to fight, it wasn’t Quill,” Tony casually mentioned as they stood before Peter, who was in the middle of throwing a giant sphere of energy at a tower. 

“It doesn’t matter who we’re fighting; stop him before he takes anything else out,” Steve instructed. “But don’t kill him.  No matter what, don’t kill him.” 

“Yeah, if he doesn’t kill us first.” Clint reached behind him to take an arrow out of the quiver; Peter was coming at them now, and it was almost frightening how vicious he seemed to be. 

Steve worried they were out of their league with Peter.  Peter fought like he was hellbent on killing them all, and his powers seemed to have grown since they’d last seen him, because now, Peter was creating things out of nothing, and Steve was tired of dodging all the stone tentacles that insisted on taking him prisoner. 

But Steve couldn’t dodge forever, and once he’d been grabbed and held to the ground by a particularly aggressive tentacle trying to squeeze him to death, he realised now there was nothing he could do to protect himself as Peter charged straight at him with a ball of energy in his palm. 

“Peter.” Steve’s voice was quiet, gentle, but it seemed to be enough to get Peter to stand still in his attack, and it was enough for Steve to notice the way his eyes had filled with a starry blue.  He tried again. “It’s okay, Peter. You know me, and I’m not here to hurt you… I promise.” 

The blue flickered for a brief second, giving way to Peter’s normal gaze.  A flash of recognition crossed his face, a grimace accompanying it. Steve didn’t understand it, but Peter turned around and charged at Natasha next. 

“Tony, he recognises me,” Steve spoke into the telecommunicator.  

“Don’t care; he’s too dangerous, and we’ve got to put him down,” Tony ordered. 

“Tony!  Tony, he’s probably  _ scared _ !” Steve argued. 

“He’s destroyed half the city.  I’m putting him down. Everyone else, get out of the way.” 

From where he was up in the air to avoid Peter’s creations, Tony charged a blast and aimed it at their rampaging friend.  He let it loose, watching as it spiralled through the air and towards its target, but just before it could make contact, something jumped in front of Peter and shielded him from the blast. 

“Thor!” Tony roared, furious that their comrade had just now joined the battle and was working against them.  “Get out of the way!”

Thor held Mjolnir out in front of him threateningly.  “You harm, Peter, and you will deal with  _ me _ , Stark.  _ I  _ will be the one to curb his behaviour!” 

From behind Thor, Peter let out a scream.  His body glowed with energy, engulfing his entire being, until another explosion rang out.  The Avengers watched on through the dust as Peter attacked Thor relentlessly, lashing out with everything he had until even Thor was struggling to fend off the attacks. 

Thor tried to shield himself with Mjolnir as he growled out, “You have been hurt, Peter…  Hurt so much… And I hurt you, also. I understand why you are here, but also… I understand this is not what you want.  Open your eyes!”

Peter faltered again, and once more his eyes cleared briefly.  It didn’t last long though; they were shrouded once again, until Peter was fighting with double the loathing and Thor had been sent flying from a heavy blast of Celestial energy. 

“Peter!” Thor pushed himself up and out of the dirt to face Peter again.  “You are hurting! But this is not you! Taking lives and causing destruction!  This is  _ not _ you!” 

Peter snarled loudly and sent another blast so sharp, Thor yelled as his face and chest tore open and blood poured out.  

But Thor hadn’t given up.  “You must have felt so alone, Peter…  So scared and lonely and  _ sad _ …  And I… only made it worse.”

For the third time that morning, Peter faltered.  His eyes cleared for longer that time, as if what Thor was saying was getting through to him.  

Thor let out a heavy sigh.  He tossed Mjolnir to the side, putting his hands out in front of him now.  “Peter… I speak with you now not as a warrior or your master… I speak to you as  _ Thor _ .  And I… am sorry.  For everything I have done to you.  You have lived such a tortured life - and I continued that torture for you!  I understand you may never forgive me… But I  _ know you _ , Peter!  You could have killed me last night!  But you did not. And I do not understand  _ why,  _ after all I had done to you.  You spared my life because this is  _ not you _ !”

Peter’s eyes were still clouded, but finally he spoke, in a voice so thick with pain, Thor felt his heart break. “Then who am I?   _ What am I _ !”

“You are  _ Peter _ !  Not a Terran; not a hybrid - and I am sorry I ever called you one!  You are more than that!” Thor reached his hand into his breastplate and pulled something out.  “When you left last night, I… I…”

Peter looked at the item Thor was holding, and now his eyes flickered violently between hazel and blue.  The weapons he had created turned to dust and stone as they crumbled back into nothingness, and finally, the world seemed at peace. 

“I returned to Asgard to speak council with Heimdall on what I must do.” Thor couldn’t convey how hard it was for him to admit such a thing; to take such a heavy blow to his pride and  _ admit  _ he had been wrong. He reached out with his free hand and pressed something on the item he was holding.  “Heimdall told me to prove myself to you - to be worthy of your trust and affection. He told me where to go; to a ship called Eclector, and I would find something that had been taken away from you many years ago.”

Thor took a few careful steps forward now, holding the item out closer to Peter as it made strange noise he couldn’t put his finger on.  Peter was tense, but still, he reached out and accepted the item. 

Thor stepped back again now.  He watched Peter stare down at the item before eventually raising one part of it and putting it over his ears. Thor didn’t understand - and he especially didn’t understand when Peter burst into tears and fell to his knees. 

“Shh…” Thor knelt down also so he could wrap Peter in his arms and hug him tight.  He dragged one hand through his lover’s hair, trying to comfort him as best he could. “Shh…  It’s okay, Peter; you’re safe. Shh…”

Peter’s eyes were hazel again now, and Thor looked over his shoulder to glare at his friends.  “Next time you raise your hands to Peter, you are dealing with me. Now, clean up here while I take Peter home.”

And with that, Thor had gathered Peter up into his arms and carried him to their home. 


End file.
